1st 2020 Toyota Supra production unit auctioned for $2.1 million

The very first 2020 Supra unit, ladies and gentlemen.PHOTO FROM TOYOTA

You already know that the hottest (and most polarizing) car in the world right now has been officially unveiled. That car, of course, is the Toyota Supra—an automobile that is totally dividing petrolheads right smack in the middle. While some are madly in love with it by virtue of its iconic nameplate, others are mocking it due to its BMW influence and constitution.

Which, in essence, is like debating whether or not the car is worth the price Toyota is asking for it. In the US, where the new Supra is being launched first, pricing will range from $49,900 (P2.6 million) for the standard variant to $53,990 (P2.8 million) for the premium variant. An initial production run of 1,500 units—called the Launch Edition—will be made available to overeager buyers for $55,250 (P2.9 million).

When the new-generation Supra reaches our shores, the price will be significantly higher due to the substantial taxes our government levies upon vehicles manufactured in and sourced from Europe. Toyota’s new sports car will be assembled in Austria, and so some friends within the Toyota network are saying we’d be lucky if we could get the Supra for around P4.5 million or less.

So these are the pricing numbers Supra fans in the US and the Philippines are looking at if they wish to park their dream car in their garage. But one guy in America has just plunked down the whopping sum of $2.1 million (P110.6 million) on the very first production unit to roll off the factory floor. Yes, that’s 38 times the price tag of the Launch Edition.

People cheer when a mountain of cash goes to charity.PHOTOS FROM TOYOTA

The purchase took place at the Barrett-Jackson car auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, this weekend. According to Toyota, the money will benefit the American Heart Association and the Bob Woodruff Foundation, so God bless the winning bidder.

We dig the matte-gray exterior. For the sake of the bidder, we hope this paint job is a one-off.PHOTO FROM TOYOTA

As the very first 2020 Supra unit to be released, the car in question will have a vehicle identification number that ends in “20201,” in reference to the model year and the unit’s slot in the production series.

Now, what makes this particular Supra unit special? From Toyota:

The exterior is factory-finished with a matte-gray exterior, red mirror caps and matte-black wheels. Inside, the Supra is just as unique, with a red interior and carbon-fiber inserts representing the first of the Launch Edition for the US market.

Some guys have all the luck. Or money. Just money.PHOTO FROM TOYOTA

We’re not ones to question the wisdom of paying close to Bugatti Chiron money for a BMW Z4 hardtop Toyota sports coupe that carries the name of one of the brand’s most desirable cars, so we’ll just wish the lucky bastard who snapped up Unit Number One all the motoring happiness in the universe. Our guess is that the car will go straight to an air-conditioned warehouse or some prestigious automotive museum. At the risk of pointing out the obvious, this example is now a true collector’s item.

Vernon is the founder and editor-in-chief of VISOR. He has been an automotive journalist for 24 years. He became one by serendipity, walking into the office of a small publishing company and applying for a position he had no idea was for a local car magazine. The rest, as they say, is rock and roll. He writes the column ‘Spoiler’.